Katie at the Kitchen Door

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2 Breakfast

Birthday Waffles!

It’s not my birthday without waffles.  And today is my birthday, so therefore, I made waffles.  Although, to be honest, I made them last night and popped them in the fridge because I’m not that much of a morning person.

One year, my birthday was on Good Friday, so we couldn’t have anything indulgent and my mom was fasting completely.  I just have this vivid memory of walking around outside on a gorgeous sunny day being really upset because the whole point of birthdays is being able to eat whatever you want all day.  And what I wanted was 1) waffles with strawberry sauce, 2) cold tortellini (or sometimes angel hair) with pesto, 3) steak tips with baked potatoes.  There was very little variation in this menu year to year.  But that year I had to wait an entire extra day, and I was not happy about it.  Now I’m an adult, and technically I could eat whatever I wanted every single day, but that would probably not be highly recommended by a nutritionist.  Although, there are days when all I really want is apple and yogurt salad, or roasted beets, so maybe I’d be OK.  Anyway, today, what I want is waffles, so I’m having them.  If I hadn’t made that clear already.

These aren’t waffles that you’ll find floating around the blogosphere.  People seem to like these Waffles of Insane Greatness and Marion Cunningham’s Yeasted Waffles.  I tried them, and they were good, but they weren’t what I was looking for.  So I got my parent’s recipe.  And they were what I was looking for.  They’re made with whipped egg whites, barely folded into the batter, and they’re chewy, light, sweet, and super eggy.  And I love them.  They don’t have that yeasty tang that some other waffles have, or a super crispy texture – both things which I think detract from the overall waffle-eating-experience, i.e. absorption of maple syrup.  Maybe it’s just that I grew up eating these, but too me, they are perfect.

As a side note, when I have waffles, I have to have two – the first one gets strawberries and whipped cream, the second one gets butter melted into every nook and maple syrup. For this reason, I try not to make waffles too frequently.

Man, I love waffles.  And my birthday, for that matter.  Happy birthday, self!

Mom’s Perfect Eggy Waffles

Makes 5 waffles.  Recipe from my mother.

  • 1 3/4 c. AP flour
  • 2 tsp baking powder
  • 1 TBS sugar
  • 1/2 tsp salt
  • 3 eggs, separated
  • 1 1/2 c. milk
  • 1/3 c. vegetable oil
  1. Whisk together flour, baking powder, sugar, and salt in a large bowl.  Set aside.
  2. Beat egg yolks until pale yellow, then whisk in milk.  Add to dry ingredients and stir gently, until lumps are mostly gone but not entirely.  Stir in vegetable oil until there’ s no oil floating on the surface.
  3. In a clean bowl, whisk the egg whites vigorously.  When they become frothy, sprinkle a pinch of cream of tartar over the top, and continue whisking until stiff, shiny peaks form.
  4. Fold egg whites very gently into the batter, stirring with an up and down motion 5-10 times.  When you are done, there should still be streaks of white egg in the otherwise yellow batter.
  5. Cook waffles according to how your waffle iron cooks waffles.  Don’t forget to spray iron with pam to prevent sticking!  Serve waffles with strawberries and whipped cream, maple syrup and butter, or whatever else you want.

0 Boston

A Sunny Day and a Sandwich

I have been looking forward to today for a long time.  Not just looking forward to, but needing.  Craving.  My office hasn’t had a holiday since New Years, and although I took two days off in February, I spent both of them on a plane.  So today, on this beautiful spring day in Boston, I’m having a real day of vacation.  And it’s glorious just to have an entire day with no commitments.

So how am I spending my day?  Simply.  I went for a long run early this morning, before the heat built up.  I had a peach and raspberry smoothie, followed by one of these bars.  I walked to the market and bought a boatload of beets, and fresh feta cheese.  I killed (hopefully) every single mealybug on my poor lemon tree by wiping each leaf and stem down with rubbing alcohol, gave it a good dose of fertilizer, and left it happily in the sun.  I transplanted the tomatoes, and the thyme, and ended up with dirt all over my face, which made me strangely happy.  I can’t wait to show you pictures of our garden, or to eat the first green peas and fava beans.

 

I took a cool shower, did my laundry, cleaned up the last remnants of my party Saturday night.  Then I made this sandwich – with cranberry-nut bread, avocado, homemade edam cheese, peppered turkey, and pickled red onions.  There’s something wonderful and simple and summery about sandwiches.  I ate it sitting outside in the shade, with a glass of lemonade.  Now I’m reading cookbooks that have been sitting on my nightstand for weeks, bookmarking all the spring recipes that I’m getting more and more excited for.  For dinner I’m going to have roasted beets with feta and candied pecans, and a glass of white wine.  I’ll watch a little TV, maybe have a bowl of lemon ice cream, and go to sleep early.  And I will have spent today exactly as I wanted to.

P.s. It’s my birthday week (and yes, I celebrate it for a whole week, if not longer), so you can look forward to a few scrumptious recipes from all my various celebrations soon!

Turkey and Avocado Grilled Cheese

Serves 1.

  • 2 slices whole wheat bread
  • 3 TBS quick pickled red onions
  • 1/2 avocado
  • 2 TBS raw onion, finely diced
  • 1 tsp sea salt
  • 4 slices black pepper turkey
  • 1 handful arugula
  • 2 slices cheddar cheese
  • 1 TBS butter

Mash avocado with raw onion and salt until creamy.  Spread on one slice of bread.  Top with pickled red onions, then arugula, then turkey, then cheese.  Top with other slice of bread.  Melt 1/2 of butter in frying pan over medium heat.  Add sandwich, with the cheese layer closest to the heat.  Spread remaining butter on exposed piece of bread.  Cook for 3-5 minutes, until you smell the butter toasting and the cheese begins to melt, then carefully flip, and cook for 3 minutes on the other side.  Serve warm with a glass of lemonade.

0 Breakfast

Greatist Collaboration: Fruit and Nut Bars

For all of my Greatist posts thus far, I’ve made healthy, easy, quick dinner-time food, because when I think about eating healthy, I think about mealtimes.  But truth be told, I’m pretty good about eating healthy meals – I rarely eat meat, I’m good about incorporating vegetables into everything I eat, and I frequently choose whole grains as my starch just because they’re tastier.  The areas where I really struggle are sweets, and snacking.  I tend to think that I deserve a little treat wayyy more often than I really do.  And don’t worry, I know I deserve treats sometimes – just not 10 times a day.  Having a desk job doesn’t make it any easier, especially when you sit next to the department chocolate bowl, and the snack drawer is full of additive-heavy granola bars and peanut butter-filled pretzels.  I tend to get the munchies twice during the work day – the first bout at around 11, which I have recently realized is easy to satiate with some milky coffee, and the second at around 3:30, when I get tired and lose a good portion of my self control.

One solution?  Bringing my own snack, one that I can feel good about, but that will still satisfy my cravings.  Since I usually crave cookies or brownies or other baked treats when I want a snack, sneaking filling and health ingredients into baked goods is an essential skill.  These fruit and nut bars from Joy of Baking are a perfect example.  They have just a teensy amount of sugar and flour, no butter, and are primarily composed of dried fruit and nuts, but are still super delicious and satisfying.  The effect of that small amount of sugar and flour is great – it’s almost like a sweet tempura, in that the fruit gets a very light coating of a slightly sweet, crispy coating.  I’m pretty sure I’ll be avoiding the snack drawer today – and my coworkers will probably thank me too, if I decide that I can bear to share these.  Head on over to Greatist for the recipe.

Other healthy snacks on my “to try” list:

3 Cookbook

Asparagus and Arugula Pasta with Almond-Parmesan Crumble

I didn’t do a whole lot of cooking last week.  Do you have weeks like that?  Where the whole shebang – planning out your meals, grocery shopping, cooking, cleaning up – just feels like a little bit too much effort for the return?  I assume everyone but the most energetic people does, at least every once in a while.  It didn’t help that our kitchen sink wasn’t draining properly – washing dishes in a sink full of murky standing water is even less appealing than washing dishes regularly is.  Luckily for me, my life is still flexible enough that if I don’t feel like cooking for a week, I don’t have to.  And cheap eats in Boston aren’t hard to find, so I enjoyed a week of takeout, dinners with friends, scrambled eggs, fruit smoothies, and leftovers from the freezer.  It was nice.

What I have been doing for the past week is reading cookbooks – lots of cookbooks.  It seems I went on a bit of a library spree (OK, I do that every time I go to the library), and I now have 8 cookbooks on my “read soon!” shelf.  Some of the titles I picked up on a whim (River Cottage Every Day, Good Meat: The Complete Guide to Sourcing and Cooking Sustainable Meat), and others I’ve been waiting to get my hands on for a while (In the Kitchen with a Good Appetite, Falling Cloudberries). And now, with the kitchen sink fixed and the type of inspiration that only comes from taking a real break, I’m back in the kitchen.  What better way to dive back into cooking than to test out some of the borrowed cookbooks?  (And decide if they’re worth permanently adding to my collection).

So far, the book I’m loving the most is Girl in the Kitchen, by Stephanie Izard, winner of Top Chef and chef at Chicago’s Girl and the Goat restaurant.  Something about the book is very inviting – it’s got big, colorful pictures, great graphic design, and fun side blurbs like drink pairings and ingredient spotlights.  This book just has energy.  And the recipes?  They’re fun too.  None of Stephanie’s recipes are tired or overdone; in fact, most of them are entirely new-to-me flavor combinations, like asparagus, goat cheese, and rhubarb salad, or chestnut confit with roasted potatoes, bacon, and kumquats.  Her food also sticks to seasonal pairings, and her techniques and ingredients aren’t on the cutting edge of gastronomy.  It’s just good, honest food, but slightly elevated.  This book makes me want to cook – now.

The first recipe I tried was this asparagus linguine with almond butter crisp, and oh man was it good.  The crisp, which is made from roasted garlic, butter, toasted almonds, bread crumbs, parmesan, and a dash of red pepper, is like crack – it’s not good for you and you just can’t stop.  Good thing there’s a bit of nutrition in the rest of the dish – it’s by no means diet food, but the large quantities of arugula and asparagus bulk up its health factor a little.  I played around with the proportions of this recipe based on what I had on hand and what I like – e.g. doubling the roasted garlic, slightly reducing the arugula (typical, huh?), etc.  I also didn’t think it needed any added salt as called for in the crisp or the sauce, given that the soy sauce, preserved lemon, and parmesan all provide a salty punch.  It’s a stellar combination of ingredients though.  I’m looking forward to trying more recipes from this book, like this pear, parsnip, and pistachio soup that’s on the menu for later this week… and to eating these leftovers for lunch tomorrow!

Asparagus Linguine with Almond Butter Crisp

Recipe adapted from  Girl in the Kitchen.  Serves 4.

  • 2 heads garlic
  • 3 TBS butter, at room temperature
  • 1/4 c. panko bread crumbs
  • 1/4 c. grated parmesan cheese
  • 1/4 tsp red pepper flakes
  • 3/4 c. slivered almonds, toasted
  • 3/4 lb. linguine
  • 1 TBS olive oil
  • 1 lb asparagus, sliced diagonally into 1-inch pieces
  • 1/2 c. chicken broth
  • 2 TBS soy sauce
  • 5 oz. (1 standard grocery store container) baby arugula
  • 2 TBS preserved lemon, sliced thinly
  • 8 sprigs fresh mint
  1. Roast the garlic – cut off the top of the garlic heads, and place heads, skins and all, in a tinfoil pouch with a bit of olive oil and sea salt.  Roast in the oven for 40 minutes at 400ºF.  Let cool, then squeeze the cloves out of the skins and into a bowl.  (I did this step the morning before, so the dinner-making process would take less time).
  2. Mash the roasted garlic with the butter, parmesan, panko, and red pepper flakes, until crumbly.  Stir in toasted almonds, and place mixture in fridge until just before toasting.
  3. Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil.  Add linguine, and cook according to package directions.
  4. At the same time you add the linguine to the water, heat the olive oil in a large frying pan over medium heat.  Add the asparagus pieces, and sautee for 3-4 minutes, or until bright green.  At this point, add the chicken broth, soy sauce, and 1/3 c. of the pasta water (just dip a cup measure into the pot while it’s cooking and add it to the sauce).  Turn the heat up to medium high, and let cook until sauce is reduced by 1/2, about 3 minutes.  Add the preserved lemon and arugula and turn off heat, stirring to wilt the arugula.  If you’re lucky, your pasta will have finished while the sauce is reducing, and you can just add the sauce to the drained pasta.  If not, wait for the pasta to finish cooking, drain, then add the asparagus and arugula sauce to the pasta pot.
  5. Return the frying pan (now empty of sauce) to the stove, over medium heat.  Add the chilled almond-butter mixture to the pan in a single layer, and fry, stirring occasionally, for about 5 minutes, or until golden brown.  Turn off heat.  Plate the pasta, and top each portion with some of the almond crisp and 2 sprigs of mint.  (Alternatively, you can add the mint to the sauce with the arugula).

0 Breakfast

Grits and bacon, anyone?

As promised, here’s the last recipe I’m sharing from Radically Simple: creamy scallion-bacon grits.  Does that sound irresistible to anyone else?  Because it did to me.  I didn’t grow up eating grits – in fact, good ol’ Cream of Wheat (doused in butter, and with enough sugar sprinkled on top to form a crackly sugar-crust) has been my hot breakfast of choice for most of my life – but grits have been in vogue lately, what with all the attention being given to Southern Food, so I decided to try my hand at them.  And it was so worth it.  Goat cheese + scallions + bacon crumbles + butter + grits + plenty of fresh black pepper?  Too good!

While this was not a healthy breakfast by any stretch of the imagination, goat cheese and scallion filled grits, crispy bacon, sunny side up fried eggs, and freshly brewed espresso is a pretty killer way to start your morning.  Especially if it’s a sunny, Sunday morning in April and you get to cook side-by-side with someone you like a whole lot, stirring the grits while he crisps the bacon, and sneaking the occasional sideways kiss.  If you then happen to get fed roast leg of lamb and chocolate cake by your parents in celebration of Palm Sunday/Passover and sit by the fire drinking red wine, you might just call it a great day.

 

Hope you all had a great Monday – the hardest day of the week is over!

For those interested, here’s my review of Radically Simple – it’s a great cookbook!

Creamy Scallion Bacon Grits with Runny Eggs

Adapted loosely from Radically Simple.  Serves 2.

  • 1/2 c. instant grits
  • 2 1/4 c. water
  • 2 TBS butter
  • 3 oz. grated cheese of your choice (original recipe calls for parmesan, we used goat cheese)
  • 4 slices cooked bacon, crumbled
  • 1 bunch scallions, sliced
  • salt and pepper
  • 2 eggs
  1. Combine grits, water, and butter in a medium-sized pot and heat over high heat, until it comes to a boil.  Reduce heat to medium, and cook, stirring constantly, until grits are thick and creamy, about 5 minutes.  Remove from heat, and stir in cheese, cooked bacon, and scallions.  Season generously with salt and pepper, and set aside.  If you prefer, you can use regular grits, which take longer to cook but may turn out creamier – just follow the cooking instructions on the package, then stir in the cheese, bacon, and scallions.
  2. In a large frying pan, fry eggs over low heat until they have reached your desired stage of doneness.  Spoon grits onto 2 plates and top each with a fried egg.  Grind more fresh black pepper on top and enjoy!

0 Pasta

Greatist Collaboration: Quinoa Puttanesca

Sitting at my desk on Monday, thinking deeply about insurance and strategy and research like I’m paid to do, I had an epiphany: “Tomato-quinoa arancini! With olives!”  Some of you might point out that this has nothing to do with insurance, and you would be correct, but I’ll take inspiration anytime, anyplace.

Now, I’ll be up front with you: I didn’t actually end up making quinoa arancini.  But it was a jumping off point for what just might be the most successful and flavorful recipe I’ve ever come up with myself – quinoa puttanesca.  Obviously, I didn’t come up with puttanesca sauce, nor am I the first person to have replaced spaghetti with the healthier quinoa in a classic Italian dish, but the proportions, timing, etc.?  My doing.  And I’m pretty proud.

 

The thought process that took me to this moment of triumph was as follows: “I need a recipe for my Greatist post this week.  Hmmmm.  I have a lot of cooked quinoa in the fridge because I’m vaguely following the Self Drop 10 plan this week and practically all the recipes call for quinoa.  Like these quinoa-banana pancakes.   And this quinoa edamame salad with carrot-ginger dressing.   So I should definitely use quinoa for Greatist.  Mmm, I haven’t had spaghetti sauce in ages.  Tomato-quinoa arancini!  With olives! [See above.]  Yeah, I should definitely use up those olives.  But tomatoes plus olives makes me think of anchovies, why is that?  Oh, puttanesca!  That could work.  But it can only have 8 ingredients to fit within Greatist requirements…”

And so on, and so forth.  I’m obviously no James Joyce, so I’ll spare you the rest of my stream of consciousness, at least for now.  In the end, with only seven ingredients – quinoa, tomatoes, kalamata olives, garlic, anchovies, red pepper flakes, and spinach – this recipe totally rocked.  It’s packed full of flavor and richness, while still being healthy.  I mean, it has two superfoods in it (although, let’s be honest, almost everything seems to be a “superfood” these days), no dairy, and no gluten, and the only real source of fat is the olives, so it’s healthy fat.  Plus, it’s easy and satisfying and just the right amount of spicy.  Head on over to Greatist to check out the recipe!

0 Cookbook

Cookbook of the Month: Radically Simple

This month’s cookbook of the month is Radically Simple by Rozanne Gold.  I love this cookbook – it’s 100% true to its title, and in my mind, simple food that manages to generate “radical,” bold, exciting flavor is pretty much the goal of home cooking.  As Rozanne quotes in her introduction: “In cooking, as in all the arts, simplicity is the sign of perfection” – Curnonsky.

Rozanne’s definition of simplicity is three-fold; it encompasses the number of ingredients, time, and technique.  A recipe doesn’t necessarily need to be simplistic in all three areas to be “simple” – it’s more about the balance between them all.  It is impressive that nearly all of the recipe instructions are stated in 140 words or fewer – when cookbooks so frequently elaborate the details of a three-part recipe over a series of 5 pages, the clear, minimalist instructions are refreshing.  The style of the book also mimics its theme, with clean, minimally styled (but lovely) photographs scattered throughout, and a strong focus on the content of the recipes – not a lot of storytelling going on here.  I think perhaps a good word to describe this book is useful –   it’s inspiring and informative without any fluff.  I can actually see this being an excellent cookbook for my friends that don’t cook much, or the ones that don’t think they’re good at it.  The ingredient lists are short enough to be non-intimidating, the techniques are basic, and the recipes are universally appealing.

And the outcome of the recipes?  So far, I’ve been very pleased with everything I’ve tried.  In fact, I’ve been pleased enough to make some of the recipes multiple times, which is something of a rarity in my kitchen.  I shared two other recipes from Radically Simple this month: pea and wasabi soup, and lemon buttermilk ice cream.  Other recipes I’ve tried and enjoyed include campanelle with caramelized onions, peas and mint; onion soup with apple cider and thyme; and pappa al pomodoro (tomato-bread soup), which is featured here.  All of them were delicious, and I have a lot more recipes bookmarked.  Have I convinced you that I love this book yet?

When I first saw the recipe for pappa al pomodoro I got really excited.  Soup that’s made from tomatoes, basil and… french bread?  Count me in!  I proceeded to make this on a chilly summer evening and be utterly satisfied.  It’s only cooked for about 15 minutes in total, so all of the flavors – garlic, tomato, basil, pecorino, red chili flakes – sing their own notes to great combined effect.  It’s kind of like eating a bowlful of pizza, except in an appetizing way.  Comfort food at it’s finest.  Serve this nice and hot, with a drizzle of olive oil and a small sprinkle of cheese, and prepare to be happy.  And stay tuned for a final recipe of Rozanne’s this weekend (spoiler alert: it includes grits and bacon), as well as another tomato-ey comfort food recipe for my Greatist post on Friday!

Pappa al Pomodoro

Adapted slightly from Radically Simple.  Serves 3 as a main.

  • 2 TBS olive oil, plus more for drizzling
  • 5 large garlic cloves, sliced
  • 28-oz. can crushed San Marzano tomatoes
  • 1 c. water or chicken stock
  • 1/2 standard-sized baguette, torn into pieces (about 4-5 c. of bread pieces)
  • 1/2 c. chopped fresh basil
  • 1/8 tsp red pepper flakes
  • 1/2 c. pecorino romano or parmesan cheese

Heat olive oil in a large pot.  Add garlic and cook for 2-3 minutes, until softened.  Add the tomatoes and the water/stock to the pot and bring to a boil, then reduce the heat and let simmer for 5 minutes.  Add the bread pieces, and cook, stirring, for 5-8 minutes, until bread is very soft.  Remove from heat, and stir in basil, red pepper flkaes, and cheese.  Serve hot with a drizzle of oil and extra grated cheese.

4 Pasta

Happiness, Alone-ness, and Lemon-Broccoli Pasta

When you picture yourself happy, what do you see?

And I don’t mean this in a melodramatic, how-do-you-really-want-to-live-your-life way.  And I don’t mean to imply that I am unhappy and thinking about the “if onlys” all the time.  What I mean is, when you’re having a crappy day at work, or you miss the bus and get stuck walking home and it’s sleeting, or you’re feeling uninspired and bored, what is the image that pops into your mind?  The very first one, before you actively construct a daydream?

When I picture myself happy, I am usually alone.  Is that weird?  Alone, but not lonely.  Alone, but knowing that the people I love the most are very close.  So close that I can go see them whenever I want, or even call out to them and have them arrive.  But still, that first image that pops into my mind – it’s just me.  And I was wondering – are there people who picture themselves as truly happy when they’re at the center of a circle of friends?  Or dancing with all eyes on them at a wild party?

Someone once told me that the difference between an introvert and an extrovert was this: “Both an introvert and an extravert can have fun at a party, but the introvert needs to recover from the party before the next one and the extravert sees the party itself as the recovery and fuel for the next event.”  When I heard this, it made so much sense to me.  I like being with my friends, I like going to parties, I like meeting new people, and I don’t consider myself socially awkward… but I frequently need down-time.  More than most of my friends seem too.  The term “introvert” has so many negative connotations to it in our culture, but I’m decidedly on that end of the spectrum.  I actually found this Wikipedia article about it pretty interesting at a basic level.  And it brings up so many more questions – what else does that aspect of personality correlate to?  Does it correlate to religiousness because introverts are more reflective?  Does it correlate to athleticism because extraverts are more likely to be active or out with others for more of the day?  Do introverts get along better with other introverts, or better with those who are more outgoing?  Obviously you could get too focused on this one aspect of human personality when there are so many facets, but it’s interesting to think about.  And good to realize that although the US tends to celebrate and encourage extraversion, there’s value across the spectrum – people just have physiological differences in their personalities.

Back to my happiness vision: I am by myself.  I am always outside.  Light is always important – it is usually early morning or late afternoon.  I am always somewhere rural, and somewhere quiet, and somewhere green.  I might randomly envision myself picking peas on a summer afternoon. Or holding a cup of tea and watching a quiet harbor.  Or simply sitting somewhere vast and beautiful and open.  The overwhelming feeling that I am experiencing is peacefulness.  It’s quite nice

Anyhow, I was just musing on that, and thought I’d share – along with a recipe that for whatever reason resonates with me when I think of being happy and by myself.  Maybe it’s the simplicity of it.  Or the fact that it’s really easy to make a single serving, with no forethought or planning involved.  Or that the fresh veggies remind me of being outside doing wholesome things.  Or maybe I just really like cream and parmesan cheese, and so that makes me happy.  No matter, whether you’re an introvert or an extrovert, you’re cooking for a crowd or just for yourself on a random weeknight, this is sure to please.  And yes, it’s basically a variation on this recipe with kale, but I’m making it with broccoli these days, so I thought I’d re-share.  I hope everyone enjoys their weekends!  I’m headed to Blog Better Boston on Saturday, and I’m looking forward to seeing some of you there!

Creamy Lemon Fettucine with Peas and Broccoli

Serves 2-3.

  • 1 TBS butter
  • 1 large shallot, sliced into half circles
  • 1/4 c. heavy cream
  • juice from 1 lemon (3 TBS)
  • 1/3 c. grated pecorino romano
  • 2 medium heads broccoli, cut into bite-sized florets
  • 1 1/2 c. frozen peas
  • fresh black pepper
  • 1/2 lb. fettucine
  1. Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil.  When it reaches a boil, add broccoli florets, and cook for 2-3 minutes, until stems are tender when pierced with a fork.  Use a slotted spoon or skimmer to remove broccoli and set aside.  Add pasta to boiling water and cook until al dente.
  2. In a large pan, melt butter, and sautee shallot over medium heat for 3-4 minutes.  Add peas, cooked broccoli, cream and lemon juice to pan and stir to incorporate.  Turn heat to low, and cook for 3-4 minutes, allowing the flavors to meld.  If cream starts to bubble, turn down heat.  Just before pasta is ready add the romano cheese to the sauce and stir until melted, then grate black pepper over the sauce.  Remove from heat.  Plate pasta then spoon the sauce and vegetables on top.  Finish with additional grated pecorino romano.

7 Cookbook

Meyer Lemon and Buttermilk Ice Cream

This past Sunday was good for me.  Actually, 70 degree days in March are pretty much always good for me, and probably everyone else as well, but this one felt particularly rejuvenating.  It started off with a Boston Brunchers‘ brunch hosted by The Farm School, which was a. totally delicious, and b. inspiring.  Many of you know that I kind of really want to be a farmer some day, as evidenced by cheesemaking, lemon-tree growing, and random farm visiting.  Since I’ve been feeling a little bit… I don’t know, bored?  Uninspired?  Angsty? … in recent weeks, a morning of listening to some pretty cool people talk about a pretty cool program that they’re obviously excited to be involved in was exactly what I needed.  The candied maple bacon, maple-mead glazed pork belly, soft-boiled egg with dill hollandaise on pork schnitzel, and maple bread pudding didn’t hurt either (yes, it was a very maple and pork-product filled event).

I wish we had gotten to hear a little bit more detail about some of their programs, but from the testimonials of our host (whose children have all attended their camps and who has been a CSA member for almost 10 years), what they’re doing is awesome.  Really awesome.  And their pigs taste delicious, which is my own personal testimonial to their work.  If you have school-aged kids, their summer camp program sounds like a totally wholesome and educational alternative (or addition) to more traditional camps.  Personally, I’ve added their year-long learn-to-farm program to my ten-year plan.  (I’m actually being serious.  It comes in between getting my MBA and buying a farmhouse to renovate.)  They also run a veggie and meat CSA, and you can even pick out your vegetables, market-style, at their pick-up location in Fresh Pond (Cambridge).  Pretty cool stuff, IMHO.

So,  this was a good start to the morning.  Then, I walked outside and realized that it was possibly the best weather of all time.  So I met Trevor in the park, where we spent a few peaceful hours people-watching and sun-bathing and arguing about whether our hypothetical farm-dog would be allowed in the house or not (it won’t) and what ironic hipster name we can name our farm (jury’s still out on that one).  It was just wonderfully relaxing and worry-free and kind of perfect.

As I was walking back from the park, feeling all happy and relaxed and everything, I really wanted some ice cream.  Like, really.  But, in an uncharacteristic move, I walked right past JP Licks, into my house, and made myself a cranberry-blackberry smoothie instead.  How disciplined am I???  But I decided that since we’re having such beautiful weather this week, and I just picked the (only) two meyer lemons from my tree, I’d make some ice cream of my own.  This ice cream is another recipe from/inspired by Radically Simple, March’s cookbook of the month, and it really is wonderfully easy.  All it takes is some buttermilk, cream, lemon juice, and sugar – mix, chill, then freeze.  No cooking a custard, no complicated techniques, just simple, refreshing, creamy-lemony ice cream.

Disclaimer: I should note, with regard to The Farm School brunch, that they made us brunch free of charge (all from their own products!), but that we were not required to review the event or their program, and all opinions here are my own.

Lemon-Buttermilk Ice Cream

Loosely adapted from Radically Simple.  Makes 1 quart.

Note: I changed the proportions a bit from the original Radically Simple recipe to reflect this other recipe I’d seen, reducing the sugar to 1 1/2 c. and replacing half the buttermilk with cream based on what I had in the fridge.  The original recipe calls for 2/3 c. lemon juice, 2 c. sugar, and 4 c. buttermilk, if you want to try it that way!

  • 2/3 c. freshly squeezed lemon juice (from 4-7 medium lemons)
  • 2 c. buttermilk
  • 2 c. heavy cream
  • 1 1/2 c. sugar
  1. In a large bowl, whisk together sugar and lemon juice until sugar is dissolved, pour in buttermilk and cream, whisking briskly to incorporate into lemon juice.  Cover bowl and chill for several hours, then freeze according to ice cream maker.

0 Soup

Greatist Collaboration: Pea and Wasabi Soup

March is a funny month.  It can be fickle, and torture you with day after day of cold gray rain.  Or it can be lovely, full of surprisingly warm days and sunshine that feels like a blessing on bare skin after so many months bundled up.  Daylight savings brings an extra hour of light to the evenings, tempting us outside after work, but the tradeoff of returning to dark mornings can making getting out of bed a struggle.

March is mainly a month of waiting, and of preparation.  We sense the arrival of spring on the horizon, and begin to shed our winter dust – sweaters get put in trunks, windows get opened, closets are cleaned out.  Spring cleaning is not just a saying, it’s something we feel the urge to do – to get our affairs in order and be ready to start fresh in the new season.  Even in religions, March is typically a time of preparation – the season of Lent, when Catholics prepare for the resurrection, almost always occurs in March.  Holi, the Hindu festival of colors, also falls in March, and celebrates the coming of spring and the departure of winter.

Waiting, preparation, cleaning – to me this all calls for simplicity, including in our food.  Of course, I think there’s something to be said for simple food at pretty much anytime of the year, but the first batches of tender, green, spring produce (peas! asparagus! fava beans!) are worth showcasing on their own, simply prepared, just because they are such a radical and welcome departure from the heavy, starchy, foods that carry us through winter.  As I was sorting through my cookbooks this week, it seemed to me particularly appropriate to focus my March cooking on recipes from Rozanne Gold’s Radically Simple, a book packed with stunningly photographed recipes, most of which have fewer than 10 ingredients.  It truly lives up to it’s title.  I’ll be sharing a few more recipes from this book later this month, but I thought the book was very much in line with what the people over at Greatist are trying to accomplish – simple, healthful recipes that are still packed with flavor – so I wanted to choose this week’s collaboration recipe from it.  I settled on this pea and wasabi soup because, well, because I love pea soup, but also because peas are one of the first spring vegetables to arrive, and a sure sign that spring is actually here.  Plus, the wasabi and buttermilk in this recipe really dress it up.  I know it’s still a bit early for fresh peas in New England – I used frozen ones this time around – but they’ll be here soon enough!

Head on over to Greatist for the full recipe!

Other Greatist posts (healthy, easy recipes with fewer than 8 ingredients and under 30 minutes active time):

  • Feta and Lentil Tabbouleh – Recipe, and Post
  • Kalamata, Lentil, and Mushroom Veggie Burgers – Recipe, and Post